Scrappy and I got paired up again today to help a strike package perform a simulated attack on a surface-to-air missile site. The plan was for a four ship of USAF F-15s and our two-ship of F-16CJs to take out an eight-ship of F-15Js simulating Red Air and proceed to the target area. The F-15s were then to defeat any additional Red Air that showed up (and magically the F-15J Red Air guys would regenerate on our way out). We were to suppress a Patriot battery which was to play Red SAM. Then a four-ship of F-4Js and F-2s would perform a simulated bomb run on the Red SAM.
This mission went fairly well for the push. While we pushed on in, the F-15s cleaned up Red Air on their side, and kindly left a couple for us to deal with, which we did. Scrappy and I then lobbed a couple AGM-88s at the Red SAM to convince it to shut down, which seemed to work. Then while the F-4s and F-2s screamed in to the target area, the F-15s tangled with a few Red Air while Scrappy and I kept the Red SAM suppressed by lobbing our remaining HARMs into it. Within a couple turns in our CAP, the strikers were on and then off target. We called the Red SAM destroyed and proceeded out of the target area. Red Air regrouped and gave us fits trying to fight our way out. Get out we did, and we had to run one of them down, running ourselves down to bingo fuel in the process. We safed everything up and headed home with one more bilateral mission under our belts.
This time I’d like to point out that the F-15Js actually did their DCA tactics while on defense. I think I was right yesterday. They do the tactics they’re used to. It almost worked for them today!